Chapter 167: Taking Off Pants — Treating the Wound
Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations
Editor: Karai
The ice shards that had formed in Lin Xu’s hair and eyebrows slowly melted away, droplets sliding down his cheeks. He was still breathing heavily, his whole body radiating a damp chill. Heinrich seemed like he was holding a block of ice, slowly warming it until it melted.
Lin Xu buried his face in Heinrich’s neck. The warm scent of vetiver surrounded them, and time seemed to freeze in that moment. A faint metallic, bloody smell wafted up from below.
The kitchen floor was littered with shattered porcelain plates and bowls. Without hesitation, Heinrich had dropped to his knees and embraced Lin Xu as he rushed over. The shards pierced through his clothes and dug into his legs. But he didn’t seem to feel the pain at all, focusing only on holding Lin Xu tightly.
Lin Xu opened his eyes and gently patted Heinrich’s back, slowly stroking it with soft, measured movements.
He forgot that his own hands were stained with blood, but thankfully Heinrich’s black military uniform only showed it as faint wet spots. After a while, once he felt Heinrich’s emotions had stabilized, Lin Xu spoke. “Heinrich, get up first. Let’s move somewhere else to talk.”
Heinrich took several deep breaths, pressing his face close to Lin Xu’s neck before finally loosening his hold so they could see each other’s faces. His silver hair, ruffled from the frantic run, fell messily over his forehead. His brows furrowed lightly, red blood vessels spreading across the whites of his eyes. He stared at Lin Xu unblinkingly, as if confirming whether his precious treasure had been hurt. His golden eyes held a deep, sorrowful affection born from a long-awaited reunion.
Lin Xu leaned in a little. When his lips brushed against Heinrich’s eyes, Heinrich’s eyelashes twitched, and his eyelids unconsciously lowered. Lin Xu’s kisses landed softly on his eyelids, then the brow bone, then his forehead—cool and gentle. Heinrich held his breath.
Lin Xu ran his fingers through the shorter, neatly trimmed yet still soft hair at the back of Heinrich’s head. “All right, shall we go?”
“Mm,” Heinrich replied quietly. Heinrich shifted slowly, one hand still supporting Lin Xu’s back while the other slipped beneath Lin Xu’s bent knees, lifting him up carefully to avoid the shards scattered on the floor. The crunch of military boots stepping on broken porcelain echoed sharply.
“Let’s head back to the room,” Lin Xu said. “Have Ruth bring the emergency medical supplies.”
“Okay.”
“Orders received.”
Heinrich and Ruth’s voices sounded simultaneously. Lin Xu had nothing more to say for the moment. He wrapped his arm around Heinrich’s shoulder and quietly leaned against his chest.
Heinrich’s broad shoulders and long legs took strides that were always big and fast but surprisingly steady, as if the shards on the floor hadn’t hurt Marshal Chu at all… No, he shouldn’t be called Marshal Heinrich anymore.
Lin Xu realized that although Heinrich still wore the old military uniform, he had removed all the insignias, rank badges, and medals related to the Imperial army. This made the already austere black uniform seem even emptier. Lin Xu closed his eyes.
He had originally hoped that his affairs wouldn’t drag Imperial Marshal Heinrich Chu into trouble, but he hadn’t expected Heinrich to cut ties with the Imperial so decisively and completely. Heinrich brought Lin Xu back to Room 002 in Area H, while Ruth operated the delivery robot to bring the emergency medical supplies.
“Put me down,” Lin Xu said. After Heinrich set him down, Lin Xu glanced at the large white egg resting in the crib beside the bed and then patted Heinrich’s shoulder. “Have a seat.”
Heinrich obeyed and sat down. Lin Xu began untying the laces of his military boots. Though there was a layer of boot leather and military pants between the shards of porcelain and his skin, the fragments hadn’t penetrated too deeply. Still, there were wounds and bleeding.
The injuries were mainly on the front of his lower legs and knees. After removing the boots, Lin Xu had intended to roll up the pant legs or simply cut off the torn fabric. But as he looked at the bloodstained holes, he thought better of it — eventually, these pants would have to be replaced anyway.
“Take off your pants.” Heinrich blinked in confusion. Before he could fully process Lin Xu’s words, Lin Xu had already undone the belt buckle and swiftly pulled down Heinrich’s pants. The wounds on his legs were now clearly visible. But what else was exposed also caught Lin Xu’s attention. He raised an eyebrow and glanced at Heinrich. Heinrich covered his mouth and coughed twice. “It’s nothing. Let’s deal with the wounds first.”
Lin Xu bent down to grab disinfectant and cotton balls. Heinrich heard Lin Xu chuckle softly but couldn’t see his expression. Yet he noticed Lin Xu’s exposed ear tips flushed faintly red. Lin Xu began by gently wiping the wounds and bloodstains with disinfectant, then used tweezers to pick out fragments embedded in the flesh.
Dragonkin healed rapidly, so all shards had to be removed before the wounds could close. To do so, Lin Xu had to carefully pry apart some already hardened scabs.
Blood flowed again in steady streams. Along with the metallic scent, an energy fragrance wafted up, making Lin Xu’s throat feel hoarse. He had only parted from Heinrich a few months ago, but it felt like he hadn’t tasted meat for thirty years. After finishing the cleaning and picking, Lin Xu applied healing gel to the wounds. Judging by Heinrich’s constitution, the wounds would likely scab over by the next day.
At that moment, a knock sounded on the door outside Room 002. Ruth spoke up, “Your visitor, Colonel Arnold.”
“Tell him to wait a moment.”
Heinrich rose to find some pants to wear. Lin Xu went into the bathroom to wash the blood off his hands. Once dressed, Heinrich instructed Ruth to open the door for Arnold.
“Marshal! Dr. Lin!” Arnold exclaimed excitedly when he saw Lin Xu. Neither he nor Ruth had updated their terms of address yet. Heinrich had tried asking Arnold to call him simply “Heinrich,” but Arnold’s face would flush red; it felt strange to him, so he stubbornly stuck to his familiar titles.
“Mr. Arnold,” Lin Xu nodded to him. Arnold said, “Captain Honda sent me to ask about our next course.”
Lin Xu glanced at Heinrich. “Who else did you pick up?”
“Only Arnold and Honda Agana,” Heinrich replied. “The others were kept as prisoners under Alonso. He’ll negotiate with the Imperial to decide their fate.”
Lin Xu nodded and pulled out a recorder, handing it to Arnold. “This is the rendezvous coordinate the Alliance agreed on. Arrive within three days — someone will be waiting there.”
“Understood.” Arnold took the recorder and left, leaving space for the long-awaited reunion between Heinrich and Lin Xu. Lin Xu urged Heinrich to sit back down and take it easy on his injured leg. “You’ve been working with Alonso?”
“Mm.”
“I hadn’t seen any news about the Sixth Legion getting into trouble,” Lin Xu said, then suddenly realized he hadn’t seen any reports about the Sixth Legion fighting fiercely against Heinrich, the traitor.
“Alonso and Guy suppressed all the information,” Heinrich said. “They’re cooperating with me because… Lin Xu, do you remember our previous guesses about Guy’s identity?”
“That he’s both the leader of the Star Pirates and the Chief of Staff of the Sixth Legion.”
“Not just that. He and Alonso also control the Dawn Front—the rebel army. Guy’s Black Fang Star Pirates are essentially a branch of the Dawn Front. Their Star Pirates identity is a cover for their true mission.”
Lin Xu frowned and sat beside Heinrich. “What do they want?”
Alonso and Guy were wealthy and powerful now. What motivation did they have for risking everything in such dangerous endeavors?
“…To resist oppression. There really are idealists in this world,” Heinrich replied. “They told me the early history of Dionysus. The seeds of rebellion started five hundred years ago.
“When the Ark Fleet arrived in the Einstein Galaxy, humanity numbered about fifty thousand. They grew for a while. Even though ABO gender differentiation had appeared, human reproduction was still slow—too slow to support their goal of conquering more planets.
“So the fleet’s colonists began using genetic machinery to create life. No reproductive cells were needed—just combining somatic cells from different people, and the machines would produce new life in seven months.
“But the Ark Fleet didn’t have enough resources to support so many. They abandoned these machine-born humans on planets in the Dionysus sector to fend for themselves. Once the humans in Dionysus reached a certain stage, colonists from the Crescent District started exploiting Dionysus’s resources and manpower…
“Hundreds of years ago, Dionysus was a hell of oppression and death. The rebel army was born out of this, but their strength was insufficient to confront the Imperial forces, so they hid and waged guerrilla warfare. Guy is a descendant of the rebels; Alonso comes from nobility… but they share the same ideals.
“This time, I only took five starships. The rest of the weapons and equipment were left to them. They’ll likely be used to arm the rebels. They’ve been preparing for war with the Imperial for many years—waiting for a chance.”
Lin Xu said, “So the previous so-called rebellion that required joint suppression by the Sixth Legion and the Abyss Fleet…”
“That wasn’t arranged by Alonso and Guy,” Heinrich said. “A group of civilians discovered early Imperial genetic experiment ruins that could be exposed. Stirred up and provoked, they launched attacks. Alonso and Guy believe it was the New Life faction stirring trouble. Only they remember the precise locations of the genetic ruins. But the chaos in Dionysus actually strengthened the Dawn Front. Whether they have other motives is unclear. War may be imminent.”
Lin Xu blinked, struck by a sudden thought. Even if the Abyss Fleet deployed, they couldn’t truly strike the Dawn Front. So the New Life faction’s goal wasn’t… the New Life faction at all.
It was part of Alfred’s scheme—to draw Heinrich away from Capital Star and carry out his plan against Lin Xu. But now, Lin Xu had escaped, Heinrich had defected, and Alfred’s plan was completely ruined. Once Lin Xu dealt with Alfred, everything should settle down again. Where would he and Heinrich go?
And what about Yuanxiao?
Lin Xu circled to the other side of the bed and poked the quietly sleeping large white egg. Arnold had guessed earlier that Yuanxiao had hidden because he hadn’t seen Lin Xu and Heinrich for so long and was scared.
Now that Lin Xu and Heinrich were back, why hadn’t the little dragon come out?
Lin Xu lifted the large white egg, running his hand over the smooth shell—but suddenly something felt off… Was this really Yuanxiao?
The egg before him looked exactly the same as the one in his memory, but an instinctive alarm went off in Lin Xu’s mind… The energy fluctuations inside were wrong—completely silent.
“What’s wrong?” Heinrich asked, noticing Lin Xu’s sudden change in expression.
“I think Yuanxiao’s condition isn’t right,” Lin Xu said.
But no machine could see through the shell. To confirm the situation, he had no choice but to forcibly open it.
Lin Xu hesitated for only a moment before sharp claws extended from his fingertips, edges gleaming with a terrifying metallic light.
“I’m going to open the egg and take a look.”
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